Shimla, July 29: The Supreme Court refused to grant relief to the Himachal Pradesh government in its challenge against the Himachal Pradesh Government Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2024, effectively upholding the Himachal Pradesh High Court’s judgment that had declared the legislation unconstitutional.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta declined to interfere with the High Court’s April 25, 2026 verdict, which had struck down the Act in its entirety. However, the apex court accepted the request of the state’s Advocate General and granted the government four additional months to comply with the High Court’s directions.
The ruling means the state government will now have to implement the High Court’s orders by restoring seniority, releasing arrears and extending all consequential financial and service benefits to eligible government employees.
The Himachal Pradesh government had approached the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition (SLP) after a division bench of the High Court, comprising Justices Vivek Singh Thakur and Romesh Verma, invalidated the 2024 Act. With the dismissal of the state’s plea, the High Court’s verdict has attained finality.
The legislation had triggered widespread litigation, with thousands of service-related petitions being filed by government employees in the High Court. The High Court had also quashed all government orders and rejection letters issued under the Act that denied employees service benefits, withdrew seniority or ordered recovery of financial benefits.
In its landmark judgment, the High Court held that the State Legislature could not enact a law to nullify or override judicial pronouncements. It observed that the Act violated the constitutional principles of separation of powers, the rule of law and the guarantees of equality under Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution.
The court had further clarified that while Article 309 empowers the State to frame rules governing recruitment and conditions of service, it does not permit legislation that is contrary to constitutional provisions or seeks to defeat binding judicial decisions.
The High Court also criticised the government for adopting what it termed a discriminatory approach. It noted that contractual employees appointed before December 12, 2003, had been granted benefits in compliance with court orders, while similarly situated employees selected through a transparent recruitment process under the Recruitment and Promotion (R&P) Rules after that date were denied comparable benefits. The court held that such differential treatment was arbitrary and violative of Article 14.
Following the Supreme Court’s refusal to interfere, the Himachal Pradesh government is now obligated to implement the High Court’s directions within the extended four-month period granted by the apex court. The judgment is expected to benefit thousands of government employees whose claims relating to seniority, pay fixation and other service benefits had remained pending due to the now-invalidated Act.
